The growing tension at the border is going to affect the relation between India and China. This will also affect the Chinese companies that are operating in India and will likely face the wrath of the government as well as users. It’s also evident from the flagging of 52 apps linked to China by Indian intelligence agencies.
As per a media report, the Indian intelligence agencies have reached out to the government to block or prevent the use of apps including Bytedance-owned short video app TikTok, WeChat, UC Browser, ClubFactory, NewsDog, Shein, Helo, Mi Video call – Xiaomi, Xender, SHAREit, Cleanmaster and few others. The media report also mentioned that each of the 52 apps will have to be examined one by one to know the parameters and the risks attached to it.
Apart from data breach concerns, the ongoing faceoff at the border with China could be a driver for the recommendation. The two countries have been locked in a dispute over the line of actual control (LAC) in a few sectors in Ladakh.
Its been long that apps like Bytedance, UC Browser, and SHAREit are under Indian agencies’ scanner. In several instances, the Indian Army has advised soldiers not to use these apps due to security reasons.
In case these apps get blocked in India then they will lose a considerable amount of revenue overnight. In India, TikTok has a user base of over 200 million and contributed the highest number of downloads in May. About 30% of the overall 2 billion downloads of TikTok are from India. SHAREit and UC Browsers also count India as their major market.
While defense and the diplomatic experts rule out the possibility of a full-fledged war between India and China, the central government is likely to tighten the noose on Chinese companies operating in India. Previously, the government had banned investments coming from neighbouring countries under the automatic route.
The rule, particularly, has restricted China from taking advantage of the dip in India’s stock market due to the Covid-19 outbreak. The world’s second-largest economy has been trying to buy distressed assets in many countries. The acquisition of a 1% stake in India’s mortgage lender HDFC by China’s central bank prompted India’s move.
